David Cameron will stay on as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom for five more years, as his Conservative Party beat Ed Miliband's Labour Party, breaking notions that this would be a neck-and-neck fight.
With results declared in most of the 650 seats, here is where the parties currently stand:
Conservatives: 326; Labour : 230; Scottish National Party (SNP): 56; Liberal Democrats: 8
Here are the major developments from the UK Election 2015:
- The Conservatives have crossed the half-way mark to win majority in the 650-member House of Commons. David Cameron is now meeting with the Queen who will invite him to form the next government.
- Ed Miliband has resigned as leader of the Labour Party. Harriet Harman, the deputy leader, will take temporary charge.
- The Conservatives have won a working majority in the House of Commons, coming back to power in an unexpected result.
- Nick Clegg, leader of the Liberal Democrats and Nigel Farage, head of the UK Independence Party resigned after their parties' defeat in the election.
- The Conservatives have crossed the magic number '323' required to control the House of Commons, according to The Guardian.
Tories have reached 323 - the magic no for controlling the House of Commons once you take out the speaker and Sinn Fein
— Rowena Mason (@rowenamason) May 8, 2015
- With only 15 seats left to be declared, the Conservatives need only seven seats to win majority and bring David Cameron back as the prime minister.
- Labour Party's Ed Miliband has decided to resign as the leader after his party failed to unsettle the Conservatives from power, according to The Guardian.
I am grateful to the people who worked on our campaign and for the campaign they ran. The responsibility for the result is mine alone.
— Ed Miliband (@Ed_Miliband) May 8, 2015
- UKIP's Nigel Farage has lost in the South Thanet seat, which would mean he may resign from the party as he had promised earlier.
- Polls are now predicting a sweeping win for the Conservatives, who are likely to even get a majority in the lower house of the UK parliament.
This is the BBC forecast -Our forecast now 329 Con 233 Lab
— Laura Kuenssberg (@bbclaurak) May 8, 2015
- The Scottish National Party has finished with a historic 56 of 59 seats in Scotland.
- Mhairi Black of the Scottish National Party has become the youngest MP in the UK since 1667, after she beat Labour Party 's candidate Douglas Alexander in Paisley and Renfrewshire South.
- The Conservatives have taken the lead from Labour Party, winning 201 seats while the latter has won 195 so far.
- Here's what the parties and leaders said -
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This has clearly been a very disappointing and difficult night for the Labour party. To every member and supporter, I want to say thank you.
— Ed Miliband (@Ed_Miliband) May 8, 2015
One nation, one United Kingdom - that is how I hope to govern if I am fortunate enough to continue as Prime Minister.
— David Cameron (@David_Cameron) May 8, 2015
The forces of decency, moderation, unity, respect for others are weaker this morning. But they are not lost, and they must not be lost.
— Liberal Democrats (@LibDems) May 8, 2015
- The Scottish National Party's rise in popularity ever since the Scottish referendum last year meant that the Labour Party lost almost all seats in its stronghold of Scotland.
- Another party that has suffered a major blow are the Liberal Democrats, which is likely to be reduced to just single figure in the House of Commons.
- If David Cameron is voted back into power, which is what trends are showing, Britons will head to a referendum on whether the UK should be part of the European Union. Cameron has promised to hold such a referendum in 2017.
- While most pollsters had forecast the "most unpredictable" elections in a generation, the initial results are anything but that. The Conservatives have taken a clear lead and exit polls show they could bag as many as 316 of 650 seats in the House of Commons.
- However, there is likely to be no clear winner even if the Conservatives bag more seats as they may not reach the magic number mark of 326 seats.